In this mid-May polling edition of Canadian polls, we look at the fluctuations in federal and political support as well as changing Canadian perception on trade partners and the economy.
In short: The Liberal government continues to consolidate its “COVID-time” approval bump, Ford and Legault lose some of their shine in the face of COVID-19 Long Term Care failures. This while opinions of Canada’s top trading partners trending to all-time lows and rising concerns over the economy.
The main takeaway is undoubtedly the widening gap between the Liberals and Conservatives, now a 13 point swing since the 2019 election. This is extremely concerning for the Conservatives, who, just a few months away from their leadership convention, seem to be lacking direction.
Smaller parties, who usually find themselves on the losing end of Liberal polling bumps, remain surprisingly steady.
- New Democrats received good press for successfully able to lobby the government into creating COVID-19 a student benefit.
- Meanwhile, Green Party and Bloc Quebecois leaders generated considerable online chatter over their statements at a joint press conference where they essentially eulogized the oil industry.
Provincial Premier-ship: In the face of the pandemic, a spotlight has been shone on provincial leaders as they’ve been tasked with crafting local responses and leading daily public health briefings.
While all premiers received a strong initial boom in support for their responses, new approval polling gives us insight into how Canadians feel their provincial leaders have fared.
- The biggest losers in terms of support have come from the premiers in Quebec, Ontario and Alberta which have suffered the most COVID cases.
- These provinces were also the home of large outbreaks especially in Long Term Care facilities in Ontario & Quebec, and at meat plants in Alberta.
Changing Concerns: Nanos Research found that following months of concern over the Coronavirus public health crisis, Canadians concern over the jobs & the economy has risen for the past four weeks.
Finally, the Angus Reid Institute conducted a poll looking into Canadian’s opinions of our top trading partners. They found historic lows in approval for both America (38%) and China (14%) which has dipped 15% since 2019.
Read: The last edition of this week in Canadian Polls
